Raptors at Jazz
The Toronto Raptors have lost the first two contests of a five-game road
swing and attempt to turn things around when they visit the Utah Jazz
on Wednesday. Toronto opened the trip with a loss to Sacramento and then
gave unbeaten Golden State a fight Tuesday before succumbing
115-110.
The Raptors have lost five of seven games following a 5-0 start but coach Dwane Casey is encouraged after his team battled back from a 16-point halftime deficit against the Warriors and trailed by one in the final half-minute. "Our guys played well enough to win," Casey told reporters. "We have something good going. We play like that in any game, we're going to give ourselves a chance to win." Utah is well-rested with its most recent contest being a 97-96 victory over the Atlanta Hawks on Sunday. Power forward Derrick Favors, who is averaging 15.8 points and 9.1 rebounds, had 23 points against Atlanta for his fourth 20-point outing of the season.
TV: 9 p.m. ET, TSN (Toronto), ROOT (Utah)
ABOUT THE RAPTORS (7-5): Point guard Kyle Lowry tallied a career-high 39 points on 13-of-22 shooting in last season's visit to Utah and he is in the midst of a strong scoring streak as he returns to Salt Lake City. Lowry has strung together five consecutive 20-point outings — including a season-best 28 against Golden State — and is averaging 23.2 points during the stretch. Shooting guard DeMar DeRozan also had 28 points against the Warriors and has eight 20-point performances this season.
ABOUT THE JAZZ (5-5): Second-year shooting guard Rodney Hood had a season-best 20 points against Atlanta after missing the previous game with a foot injury. Hood is shooting just 29.2 percent from 3-point range even after draining a season-best four against the Hawks, and coach Quin Snyder thinks that ratio will improve as Hood feels better. "We've been smart, which sometimes means being conservative," Snyder told reporters. "We're never going to put one of our guys in jeopardy from an injury standpoint."
BUZZER BEATERS
1. The Raptors have won the last four meetings by an average margin of 19 points.
2. Utah C Rudy Gobert has blocked three or more shots in seven of the eight games in which he has played.
3. Toronto SF Terrence Ross (thumb) has missed five straight games and isn't expected to return during the road trip.